Expect MASSIVE iPhone X Delays – First Shipment Less Than 50K Units

It’s been fairly well publicised that Apple’s iPhone X is having supply problems and won’t, according to the most prominent analysts, be available in decent numbers until inside 2018.

The situation might be a lot worse that previously feared, however, with news that Apple’s manufacturing partner, Foxconn, finalised an initial shipment of only 46,500 iPhone X units; delivered the the UAE and the Netherlands from Zhengzhou and Shanghai.

Stack that up against expected pre-order demand and it’s looking pretty grim. KGI Securities analyst, Ming-Chi Kuo, predicted 40-50 million pre-orders for the iPhone X and said Apple would need 30-35 million units to meet demand inside 2017. Recent reports also indicate that Apple fans are not buying the iPhone 8, instead preferring to wait for the iPhone X; the iPhone 7 is currently selling more units than the iPhone 8 (presumably those who are upgrading from the iPhone 6 or earlier).

That initial shipment pales in comparison to Apple’s usual initial shipment figures. New reports indicate Foxconn is now producing 400,000 iPhone X units per week, up from 100,000 previously. Analysts believe the source of the supply problem is not the OLED panels, which were previously thought to be an issue. Instead, it’s the 3D TrueDepth face scanner camera, the one used for the Face ID biometric identification which replaces the Touch ID fingerprint scanner. Allegedly, this tech requires two key components working in tandem, and one of those components is only being produced in the tens of thousands of units, which is out of sync with Apple’s other component production rates. Manufacturing yields have reportedly fallen below 10%

Allegedly, this tech requires two key components working in tandem, and one of those components is only being produced in the tens of thousands of units, which is out of sync with Apple’s other component production rates. Manufacturing yields have reportedly fallen below 10%